Andy and I took a 15 mile ride on rolling roads around the patch yesterday. I could begin to love summer again with temps below 80.

Look who we came across…

Momma stomped out of the woods to greet me at the fence.

FEED ME!

I pulled shocks of long grasses and wild flowers and offered them through the fence. She raked them away with her thick, rough tongue. I imagined steam puffing out of her nose; she breathed so heavily Andy could hear her from twenty feet away.

…but do not touch!

I reached in to feel the wiry mat of fur on her forehead. I did not think a creature so big could move so quickly; I scraped the back of my hand against the wire fence in retreat as she reared her head in protest. She rammed against the fence, which bowed but held, her horns thrusting through a warning.

Standing ground.

The momma buffalo kept her body between me and the baby. Before long, she grew bored and shuffled the youngster off to join another adult and juvenile buffalo that had kept their distance.

As Andy and I turned the last corner to climb home we heard a high pitched scream and a drone above us. Looking up we saw a young eagle rising into the sun, pursued by a small airplane. I was glad to see the plane eventually veer away from the powerful bird of prey.